


Wilting Roses

by JessabellStories



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Cheating, M/M, Sonadow - Freeform, shadonic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:02:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25295134
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JessabellStories/pseuds/JessabellStories
Summary: Shadow has just received a formal invitation to a rather official and extensive engagement party. Normally, Shadow was the kind of person who would reject these invitations outright, but this was different. It was no secret to the ebony hedgehog that he had some unrequited feelings for a rather dashing blue hero and now he feared he may never receive the love he so desperately dreamed of. Rather than ditching the party altogether, Shadow decides he must face the pain and support his rival to the best of his ability. However, it is soon discovered that his feelings might not be as unrequited as he originally thought.
Relationships: Shadow the Hedgehog/Sonic the Hedgehog
Comments: 2
Kudos: 34





	1. Shadow, the Hopeless Romantic

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter one does not have any sex scenes. That won't happen until later down the line. I will provide a warning before the chapter in question when it's posted.

Exuberant cheers and congratulations filled the bone-chillingly cold airways as I glared down at the cement walkway below my nice, well maintained steel-toed dress shoes with the rushing emotions of an angry panther about ready to pounce on his prey preparing me for a night of pain and suffering. The sounds were being muffled by the thick walls separating my mind from the over joyous, most likely intoxicated, party folk. I sighed softly as my hand slowly hovered over a small white plastic button a few inches from the wooden door that I was starting to consider my one and only true friend…

This had to be undoubtedly my worst nightmare…. Something only comparable to watching the life leave the eyes of some of my closest G.U.N comrades after a nasty mortal confrontation with rival forces. Under most circumstances, I would have given a quick and uninterested denial to whoever had the guts to invite me to any such sort of gathering, but this was different. 

I swallowed deeply as I pulled my arm back to my side, unable to really interpret why I was reminding myself of the incident. It was undoubtedly one of the most painful situations I had ever been put through, and that fact alone made the pain even more unbearable.

My rival… (And who I did consider to be my friend, even if we didn’t share the intimate moments he frequently shared with his other confidants), notified me that he was making the biggest life decision a person could possibly make… I never once thought that Sonic had the maturity necessary to take such a step; but, alas, whether I was banking on the hope that he would never be fully chained down, the nightmare had become a reality. A choice I knew that, as well as everyone else, was inevitable. However, the inevitability would not take away the sheer gravity of the decision. 

He and Rose were getting married…

I took a deep breath as the air filling my lungs did little to comfort my overflowing emotions. I had to remain composed… This was not the time to cry wolf and certainly not the time to put Sonic in an uncomfortable position. 

I had been pushing down the thoughts of lust and desire for years… Why would I admit something so petty to the great hero of Mobius when he barely had the time and energy to deal with the constant influx of territorial attacks and attempted takeovers. Why would I put him through something like that? I couldn’t.. And even though the agony in my chest was practically unbearable, I still stood by my decision. Him and Rose were perfect together. The perfect little couple. A blue, childlike but golden-hearted warrior and his beautiful rosy damsel. And soon… They would be the perfect little family with speeding little blue demons of their own to tend to. 

I was disgusted… I knew what I was saying was true. It had to be true. The great hero of Mobius could have whatever partner he wanted and she was beautiful, smart, intelligent, and not to mention, extremely fertile. Not that I think the sapphire hedgehog cared much for fertility, it was merely an added bonus. 

Why could I not just let it go? He was happy… Infectiously happy. He never stopped smiling after the engagement and today was their day to milk it for everything it was worth. And yet, here I was, being the typical sour-puss I was. I had assumed that I had aged past this point, but the idea of crashing the whole thing and leaving with the final laugh, filled my heart with temptation. It certainly wouldn’t ruin their marriage and I could release all my rage and frustration out in one explosive gesture. 

The hedgehog would probably hate me for it but why the heck should I care anymore? We never had a very close relationship, to begin with. After the marriage, the two love-birds were probably going to be busy with their lives, so Sonic and I would probably never need to get along ever again. 

I thought about it for a few more minutes before deciding that it just wasn’t my style. I didn’t want to hurt my estranged blue friend. It wasn’t his fault that I was in agony and certainly not the fault of any other member of the festivity. I just wanted the pain to stop… These feelings had run their course and it was time for me to just accept that I was never going to receive any of the offers I had been so graciously awarded in my dreams. 

I couldn’t help but notice my lips quivering from underneath my bundled scarf. Maybe, I should just go home. Then, I could sulk to the ends of the earth in the safety of my own house, instead of running the risk of losing my composure here. But I knew that I would regret it for the rest of my life. Whether the hedgehog expected me to arrive, or not, did not matter. What did matter is that I showed my support and grow a sturdy-enough backbone to express my adoration in a more mature and ethical manner. 

I sucked in another deep breath of the frigid cold air and gently closed my ruby tear-filled eyes together for only a few moments… If I truly loved him and, I knew by this point that I probably did, I would try my best to show him off with a smile… Even if the burning agony in my heart was begging me to just tell him the truth, it was too late… I lost my chance and now it’s time to accept my fate. 

A faint, heartbroken smirk moved across my face as I confidently zipped my hand to hover right over the doorbell to the house of loud noises and pain… Now or never. Show him how much you REALLY care.

As I was about to forcefully bang that button into oblivion, a clicking noise emanated from the dark-wood door in front of me. The sound followed a rush of light beaming through my unadjusted eyes as the door seemed to magically open on its own. 

I stood there, fairly stunned and rather concerned that a ghost had either entered or exited the premises only to see a pair of glaring and familiar glossy emerald eyes… A moment passed as the eyes changed from upset to a shimmering hopeful stare. Chaos did those eyes entrance me… They were always so bright, so vibrant, no matter what the situation… No matter how dark the outside world was. It was almost as if that no matter how terrible the world was… No matter how cruel the fate of Chaos was… He was there to be a constant ray of light… A ray of possibility, and a ray of hope. That is what attracted me to him in ways that I will never fully understand… I wanted to feed on that energy like a lust-full parasite. I wanted him to fill me with that gorgeous delicious stream of sunshine and help me find some sense of hope… Some form of motivation to keep me going. Alas, that energy was for the few who were able to wrestle their way through an intense and deep competitive field… Not for a hopeless romantic such as myself… But there was a part of me that still hoped, as most hopeless romantics do, that I might still be given a chance… 

I stuttered slightly as my saliva had clumped in my throat, making it difficult to speak. I had no idea how long I had been standing there, staring at Sonic’s eyes, but he didn’t seem to mind it. As a matter of fact, he seemed to be rather entranced himself. Peering into my soul just as deeply as my own. Maybe, he attempting to locate whatever had left me so speechless.

“Hay, Sonikuu. Are you okay? You rushed out as if something had spooked you!” A striking young rose-colored hedgehog approached the doorway with her beautiful floral print cocktail dress floofing as she strolled.

Sonic didn’t respond right away, which was a big surprise to me. Normally, Sonic always had some kind of witty response waiting in the wings of his psyche, but he seemed to have been caught off guard by the sudden emergence of his fiance. He sighed slightly as he turned around to make eye-contact with his rosy lover. 

“Sorry, Aimes. I had a weird feeling that someone was spying on our party or something… Wanted to make sure it wasn’t Egghead.” He replied rather plainly, and not in his typical hero-like voice, before turning to back to me and pointing his hand towards my bundled-up body.

“Oh! Shadow. It’s a pleasure to see you so nicely dressed this fine evening. Come in this once, you must be freezing.” She reacted chipperly as she forcefully pushed the concerned blue hedgehog out of the way before grabbing onto my arm.

My personal space was certainly be violated and I felt that maybe the whole “leaving and crying by myself” thing was a better option than whatever I was getting myself into. However, before I could respond, the sapphire hedgehog cut in front of her before grabbing her hand and pulling it off of my body.

“Aimes, darling. I think you know as well as I do that Shadow does not like to be touched. Maybe, he was thinking of leaving. Be considerate and let me handle this.” He explained calmly with his eyes shining about as much as his beaming smile.

Sonic was charismatic, to say the least. But why with the sudden change of attitude? I had seen some hints of hesitation before. Maybe it was just a sign of his inevitable exhaustion. The celebrations and constant interviews were surely starting to get to him. 

A humph from his fiance followed as her strut out of the doorway and back into the house was followed by a very brief roll of the eyes. She clearly was not happy with his response.

I glanced up at the hedgehog again, now finally being able to see his expensive, almost regal suit attire, something that I know the hedgehog would normally not be caught dead in but only solidified the importance of this specific event. His eyes met with my own and I swear I could feel my face flush in panic. He looked unbelievably handsome… He even had a matching handkerchief in his top jacket pocket to bring the whole aesthetic together.

“Look, Shadow. I know you hate these kinds of events. There is absolutely no need for you to force yourself into an uncomfortable atmosphere such as this. I understand and am fully behind you if you want to leave. Likewise, if you do still want to join us, you are absolutely welcome. We just broke out the champagne.” He explained with his gentle voice soothing me into a state of complete satisfaction.

He remained poised with his foot gently resting against the base of the door to keep it from closing with his eyes once again meeting with my own as he awaited a response.

“I… I am already dressed and present so I might as well join you even if it is only for a short while,” I replied my hand waving in front of me in an attempt to express how completely unaffected I was.

A slight chuckle was released in response, the sapphire hedgehog’s face turning back to face the direction of the other party-goers.

“Hay, guys! Shadow is going to join us. Isn’t that great?! Let’s uncork that sucker and get this engagement party started!” He exclaimed to the other guests who responded with a mixture of woos and sighs.

He quickly grabbed my hand before forcefully pulling me into his humble abode and unfortunately into his muscular arms.

What in the world… Had I just gotten myself into?


	2. Buried Treasure or Fools Gold?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What feelings may lay buried underneath years of careful shoveling is not something I wished to ever discover, but I suppose was possibly inevitable from the start. Should I dig deeper? Or should I leave the beautiful sliver of shining riches buried as to not discover whether it was in fact treasure or, whether it was actually fools gold from the very beginning?

My heart… All I could hear was my heart and all I could see was darkness, not that I was complaining. My eyes were ever so gently shielded from the light and fear of the outside world with my head softly resting upon the softest pillowy peach fur ever known to mobians. Currently, said peach fur was being cloaked by the silkiest suit I had ever had the grace of ever coming into contact with. Whether it be the impending fever of embarrassment or the warming grace of pleasure, I knew this was unlike any other feeling I had ever dreamed of. 

I had been yanked straight from my comfort zone and into a completely different zone entirely. A zone that I could not recall ever meeting before. One could have called it delighted, if not a bit intoxicating and I was grateful that my heart did not have the capability of breath because if it could, it would sing into the high heavens, stampeding through the villages of mobius with its head held high and its arms open for all to see, expressing the abundance of security and comfort currently rushing through its small but hefty ventricles. I could feel said organ in question fluttering and thumping at speeds one could have only seen in the tiniest of hummingbirds. Not to mention, if it was not for the muscular and extremely sturdy sapphire hedgehog currently holding me up, I would have collapsed to the ground with the only indication of life being my rapidly throbbing myocardium.

I could hear a faint and stuttered sigh emanating from the hedgehog responsible for this intoxicating sensation and it was then that my mind started to wonder if he understood how much he had thrown me off… How badly I wanted to collapse into his arms and let him take me right then and there in the bright, terrifying space, he called a foyer. I say terrifying because every part of Sonic’s house petrified me. It was the place where personal space, reputation and dreams go to die and are replaced with feelings of inadequacy and peer-pressure.

I could feel a sense of hesitation from said hedgehog as I assumed everyone was probably a tad confused as to why I had fallen right into Sonic’s arms. Normally, I would immediately retain my composure and pretend that nothing even happened. However, I was so comfortably collapsed onto my rival's chest that I did not feel an ounce of fear or shame. Unfortunately, I had a feeling that wasn’t the case for Sonic. With the foyer being connected to the main living room, I assumed everyone was currently staring at us or was planning on doing so soon and I mentally giggled at the image of the flustered and embarrassed little blue hero frantically attempting to save both his reputation and ego.

“It looks like the change from the freezing temperature outside to the warmth of the house has made him a little woozy. I’ll quickly throw him into the guest bedroom to make sure he has a place to rest until he comes around again.” Sonic’s muffled voice explains chipperly as I could feel the slight pulling of his arm followed by an orchestra of confusion and annoyance from the fellow party-goers.

It did not sound like anyone I knew personally, so I prayed that none of my rivals' friends had actually witnessed our embrace. If they had, I surely would never hear the end of it. I was also grateful that my legs still had the ability of movement, or else the charismatic blue hero would have to carry me, which I came to realize was only a step or two from the entrance. I could hear the door gently close behind me as I was expecting Sonic to release me from the embrace and place me on the bed to rest. Thankfully, he did no such thing as I continued to stand and bask in his glorious, beautiful positive Chaos energy.

I could feel a slight twinge of embarrassment as it seems the logical part of my brain had finally caught up to speed on the exact predicament I was putting myself through. It was quickly shushed by the explosive thumping of my heart and the overwhelming feeling of neediness. It seemed as if Sonic was in on whatever was going on because he did not move an inch, even his breath seemed to align with my own, allowing us to be as close as possible for every second of this glorious moment.

It was at that time that I could feel a soft, warm, ungloved hand slip in between the two of my largest black and red-striped quills, my breath hitching for a second as the warmth of his hand startled my freezing head. For a moment, I had begun to believe that I had officially lost my mind, assuming that my own overwhelming and powerful urges were starting to interlock with the reality of this unprecedented situation. However, it took a few more seconds of burning agony, with invisible shocks of chaos energy flowing out of his hand and into my body like some kind of overworked electric water dam, that I realized this was not some hyper-realistic hallucination. No… This was reality. 

**_How? When? Why?_ **

I was quick to screech those thoughts to an abrupt halt as I realized that this was one of the most satisfying moments of my existence. Those secure arms, trained after years and years of assaults and attacks, pulled me closer, tighter, but carefully in an attempt to keep me from collapsing at any moment from pure exhaustion. Who cares why he was doing this? It could have merely been an attempt to keep me from falling, or it could be a grand gesture of affection. I really could not care less which intention he had, because I was getting my battery filled to the brim with that pure and vibrant chaos energy Sonic has always been eagerly known for. I, of course, had my own Chaos energy to spare but Sonic’s always felt different. It drove me crazy even when we were only a couple of feet apart. It made me feel excited, creative, enthralled, adventurous and heck even social. Why Sonic’s energy felt so different from my own, I suppose, will never truly be deciphered. 

I pushed my nose closer to the other's chest, hesitating for a moment before taking a good and long inhale. His scent was pure and clean almost as if he were washed in the springs of heaven itself with a musky after-tone practically begging me to bury my face all the way into his chest fur and lap that musky scent right off of him. This had to be the secretion of seduction, there was no other interpretation. Either Sonic naturally smelled like sex (which was unlikely because I had surely been close enough to him to smell it in the past) or his so-called ‘fiancé’ was not properly satisfying him, the thought of which making me extremely nauseous. The poor kid must be in unbearable agony if someone of his reproductive age was not receiving proper releasement.

I smirked widely from inside the caves of desire and lust at the thought, (maybe Sonic was just as needy as myself) only to have my face assertively thrashed back to the outside world. I could feel myself falling back as my eyes interlocked with the sapphire hedgehog, his face twisted into a scowl of frustration, temptation, agony, and pain. Why did he look so disgusted? Was this affecting him just as much as myself? Or was he merely sickened by the thought that I had the audacity to inhale his beautifully pure scent?

I quickly shuffled my right foot behind my other to prevent me from falling down any father against the door before huffing in satisfaction, my lips curving into a seductive yet satisfied smirk. Sure, I felt a little guilty for making the sapphire so uncomfortable, but he had to be overreacting. I had not done anything outwardly perverted, at least in comparison to the thoughts racing through my head like a horny teenage boy preparing himself for the viewing of his first striptease.

I then wiped the wet ooze of drool from the corner of my lips before returning back to my typical uninterested pose, my arms crossed in front of my chest almost as if I was protecting myself from whatever fuming fire the other hedgehog had stirring inside his adorable little brain. I then leaned my back against the door, my position remaining relatively similar, as I continued to pull my intoxicated-lust-filled mind back to reality. My smirk continued as I had not begun to feel much sense of guilt. In fact, I felt invigorated and ready to take on the world. Maybe this party would be more fun than I had originally thought.

The blue hedgehog continued to stand in front, his glare not ceasing but his face slowly returning back to it’s typical “I know better than you, old man” look before backing away and colliding with the edge of the bed. It made me smirk even wider. Did the hedgehog really think he had won something? Because surely, I was the winner in whatever contest we were competing. I hissed slightly in amusement, practically ready to burst into laughter. He was adorable. Downright precious. I may have come here with the intention of possibly destroying his party, but I had no idea I could actually do it without trying.

Sonic’s eyes met with my own again, those glaring yet seductive irises throwing me into another one of those trances I was oh so familiar with before watching him slowly approach me.

“Going for round two already, hedgehog?” I asked, my smirk slowly turned into a chuckle as I could not help but release a little of my manic joy into the world.

“I have no idea what you're talking about, Shadow. I was just coming over to take your coat, so you don’t continue to _overheat_ and possibly have you pass out on my chest again.” He responded slyly, his own chuckle emanating from his chapped lips, signaling that he was totally in on what had just happened.

By the look on his handsome little face, I would say he had enjoyed himself just as much as myself, the thought of which was just as joyous as it was terrifying. He was engaged for crying out loud… He should not be messing around with an older male hedgehog, such as myself, under any circumstances, let alone now.

I was pulled back to reality when a forceful tug of my jacket forced it to slide down the length of my shoulder and into the other hedgehog’s arms. His eyes dilated at the sight of my white cotton undershirt, almost as if he were mentally unclothing the rest of my body, as well. He had seen me without clothes various times, of course, so why this incident triggered a perverted and heated response such as this sort of baffled me.

Our eyes locked again as the gleaming luminescent beams of jade and emerald flickered back and forth from one side of the iris to another, the colors inching closer and closer to my face with every baffled breath. Before I could even interpret what was going on, that stupid and handsome hedgehog had me backed against the door with his hand gently pushing against my shoulders in an attempt to keep me sandwiched. He huffed slightly in my face, perhaps to show dominance or simply a reaction to the overflowing chaos energy flowing between both our bodies.

_“Shadow_ …” His voice croaking slightly with more than a hint of lust and neediness.

“These kinds of games are not your style… I’m certain of it. How about we keep all of this on the down-low for now. Don’t worry. I am happy to discover what adventures these feelings take us after the events of the engagement party.” He continued, his toothy grin shining through as those eyes beckoned me to both follow his command and simultaneously take him right then and there.

Surely, he did not actually mean that. Sonic must have been yanking my chain because there is no way that I had wasted and endured years of pain only to discover that TONIGHT OF ALL NIGHTS he wanted to play a little game of servant and master. Absolutely, no way. He was either joking or had completely lost his mind.

It was then that it hit me… That scent. Maybe Sonic was, in fact, not receiving enough sexual stimulation and it had officially driven him mad. There is no other explanation for this sudden sexual urge and neediness. That stupid pink hedgehog probably had no idea what kind of monster she had created.

I felt bad for him… I really did, but that was not an excuse for this kind of adultery. At least it would be adultery if Sonic was married and not just engaged. I sighed slightly as this little game Sonic was speaking of had gone too far. This was not something that should be continued whether it pleased us both… Or not.

“Sonic. I have no idea what Rose has or has not done to you, but you need to snap out of it. You love her. I see it in your eyes and messing around with me, even if you’re not receiving enough ‘stimulation’, is just going to harm you and her relationship.” I spat quickly as the other hedgehog continued to push my shoulder against the door, making it practically impossible for me to move out of my current position.

I shuffled slightly from underneath my rival's grip. At this point, the shame had finally started to sink in. What the hell had just happened. Why did I melt so easily in his hands like chocolate on a hot summer day. This wasn’t like me, at least visibly. Normally, I could control myself fairly easily. This… This was just embarrassing.

“You think… This is about… Rose? Amy has nothing to do with us. Never has, never will.” He mumbled back in frustration and confusion, before forcing his body close enough to my body for the chaos energy to erupt wildly against our fur.

“You think… I’m just going to stand here and merely glare at those seductive crimson-colored eyes of yours. Yearning me… Begging me to _‘save’_ you from the agony of your own tortured mind… You wish. No. You **expect** me to not be the hero I always try to be and attempt to swoop in and save you?!” He barked widely, his voice horse and frustrated and eyes starting to tear-up with resentment.

“I never asked to be saved, hedgehog. Not to mention that your idea of ‘saving’ is harming your already blooming relationship with Rose. As much as I know it will pain you to hear, the greatest hero of all is not yourself, it’s time. I need time, Sonic. Whatever you see in my eyes is not me begging for help. It’s me begging for those feelings that I have buried deeply for all these years to dissipate so that you and myself may live the comfortable happy-ever-after we both know we deserve. Please, we both know this is not healthy for us and that this is not who we are. This is surely some kind of weird pent-up emotional outburst from years of neglect.” I murmured back before gently patting the top of his now messy, sweat-filled quills.

I could hear a single soft whimper, almost as if it was coming from the tiniest of newborn mobians before feeling the hands of my rival release me from my prison. I nodded gently at him in an attempt to console him on whatever had him so flabbergasted and heated in the first place. His eyes flickered up to meet with my own, the shining emerald irises now dull with disappointment and exhaustion.

“I am happy you came to my engagement party, Shadow. Your right. This is not good for us. This is not good for anyone… It’s just been a bit of a rough week. I should probably be making my way back to the living room. The other guests are probably worried. You’re free to join me. Unless… You decided that you’ve had enough of me.” He chuckled slightly with his mouth curving into a smile as his eyes continuing to show some slight signs of defeat before he slowly backed away from me, pointing his hand towards the door.

I smiled back, which was a very rare occurrence as it seemed like he had cheered up slightly, if only for a short time. Maybe his marriage was stressing him more than he lets on. I pray that this incident was merely a lapse in good judgment and not a recurring incident.

I sighed slightly as I was immediately reminded that I had to interact with… people. God, I hate social events. Nonetheless, I took a deep breath and pushed my nerves aside. It’s clear that Sonic is under a lot of pressure and I suppose I should stay to show my support.

“I’m here, so, I might as well stay. However, don’t expect me to be Mr. Charismatic like yourself, Sonic.” I replied jokingly as I reached behind my lower back until I had located the handle.

I did not want to turn away from him for even a second, which was unusual if not a bit unsettling but my thoughts were interrupted as I could feel my blood rushing through my veins as I pushed the handle down, cracking the door open just enough to hear the unintelligible rambling of dozens of guests and their clinking glasses. As soon as I felt a slight twinge of panic, I glanced back at the handsome sapphire hedgehog, taking a quick note of how much more muscular and mature he looked then the last I saw him only for his to eyes meet with my own again, his hand caressing my shoulder just barely enough to sense his energy.

“Never expected you to be anything but yourself, Shadz. Or at least I haven’t in a very long time.” His lips pursed slightly as I could feel his own anxiety rushing through my hand.

Either my prior statement had made him uncomfortable or he didn’t agree with me. Not that it really mattered to me. What the sapphire hedgehog sees in me, I will never fully understand. What does matter is whether these ‘feelings’ I'm having are meant to be taken seriously or not.

What feelings may lay buried underneath years of careful shoveling is not something I wished to ever discover, but I suppose was possibly inevitable from the start. Should I dig deeper? Or should I leave the beautiful sliver of shining riches buried as to not discover whether it was in fact treasure or, whether it was actually fools gold from the very beginning?

At this point... I wasn’t even sure if I even had a choice anymore.


End file.
